Dilip Saikia.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Guwahati: Lok Sabha MP Dilip Saikia is set to be the next Assam BJP president as he became the only nominee for the post till Thursday, the last day for filing nominations, a party leader said.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the formal announcement for the state BJP chief will be made on Friday.
Saikia, a former BJP national general secretary, is the second-time MP from the Darrang-Udalguri (previously Mangaldai) constituency.
“Dilip Saikia has filed nomination, which has been supported by me, our incumbent state president Bhabesh Kalita and others. In all probability, he will be announced elected unopposed tomorrow,” Sarma told reporters at the party's state unit headquarters here.
Along with the president, the names of the national council members from Assam will also be declared at 11.30 am on Friday and the new Assam BJP president will also take charge the same day, he added.
“With the completion of the state president election, we have crossed an important milestone in the BJP’s 'Sangathan Parv'. We are now one step closer towards getting the national president,” Sarma said.
The CM lauded outgoing state BJP president Kalita for his leadership and said, “Under him, we have won the Lok Sabha polls, byelections, municipal elections and also enrolled over 60 lakh primary members.” He maintained that Kalita, who had taken over as the state party chief in June 2021, was not in the fray as he had expressed a desire to contest the next assembly polls.
“We had taken a decision that no mandal, district or state president of Assam BJP can contest the 2026 assembly polls. Kalita had said that he wants to continue serving his constituency Rangia and had opted out from the president’s race,” Sarma said.
State BJP spokesperson Dewan Dhruba Jyoti Maral told PTI that Saikia filed his nomination before the party's central leader Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who is the returning officer for this election.
The cut-off time for filing nominations was 7 pm on Thursday.
The MP submitted a list of 20 proposers and supporters along with his nomination, with outgoing state president Kalita, CM Sarma and deputy speaker in the state assembly Numol Momin being among the signatories.
Saikia, aged 51, has held various positions in the BJP and its youth wing and was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 2019.
Shekhawat had reached Guwahati on Thursday evening, while three other top central leaders Harish Dwivedi, Sambit Patra and Sunil Bansal had been overseeing the election process.
Consultations were held with state leadership to arrive at a consensus candidate for the top post.